The Skulduggery Pleasant Guide: Part 2

It’s that time of month again (well, not really but my Thirteenth Doctor post and my Berlin school trip has somewhat delayed this post) where I dive into the brilliant world of Skulduggery Pleasant in anticipation of Resurrection (otherwise known as SPX). We now have a cover, which is awesome–

Best desktop wallpaper ever!

But first, a look back at the original books. The original trilogy focused on introducing the characters and the world, with the story arc being the Faceless Ones, ancient gods who seek to return to the real world. With the tone of the books set, this next set of books focused on the Necromancers, sorcerers who used another kind of magic different from the type used by Skulduggery. It’s also worth saying (as it’s not really a spoiler if you’ve read the first book and I forgot to mention it last time) that Stephanie has changed her name to Valkyrie due to plot specific reasons. With that aside, let’s go straight into it-

Dark Days

The title foreshadows the darker tone that the books will take after this book. There’ll still be comedy, but the stories get more complex and emotional. This one is essentially a James Bond thriller, as a bunch of villains from the previous books team up to try and take down the Sanctuary (the magic government) whilst Skulduggery, Valkyrie and the rest of the gang try to stop them. There is so much happening here but it’s never convoluted or boring. It’s hard to discuss where this book goes without delving into spoilers, but it resolves major plot points whilst setting the stage for the rest of the books.

My personal favourite of this trilogy, Dark Days is an action packed (seriously, it’s got so much action) and more mature book than the first three. The highlights include the villain (my personal favourite from the series) major revelations for the characters, a true shaking of the status quo and an epic car chase in the middle. It truly is one of the finest chapters in the saga, with many many hilarious moments-

“That is an awful plan. On a scale of one to ten – the Trojan War being a ten and General Custer verus all those Indians being a one – your plan is a zero. I don’t think it is a plan at all. I think it’s just a series of happenings that are, to be honest, unlikely to follow on from each other in the way in which everyone’s probably hoping.”

Mortal Coil

“You’re under arrest for multiple counts of murder. You have the right to not much at all, really. Do you have anything to say in your defense?”

The Goblet of Fire of Skulduggery Pleasant in that it’s where they start getting long. Actually, aside from that there’s not much similarity. Once again discussing without spoilers is difficult, but the book focuses on the ramifications of the events in Dark Days whilst also setting up events in the future books. This is also the point where it’s abundantly clear where the series is headed-like any good series, it transcends its premise (skeleton detective with magic) and becomes something more, whilst still sticking to what readers want. The plot is essentially Valkyrie dealing with a major twist in Dark Days and an army of spectres being unleashed on the world, which is about all I can say without spoiling.

The Necromancers come into the forefront here, and what makes Derek Landy’s take on the Necromancers great is that he doesn’t go with the cliched “all necromancers are evil”. Rather, the necromancers are all different: some are good, others not so much, whilst others are in the middle. There’s also a brilliant subplot that mocks Twilight. By this point, the characters have all evolved and changed, and it’s only going to get more epic.

Death Bringer

Remember how I said in Part One that the Skulduggery/Vengous exchange wasn’t the funniest exchange in the series? Well, that’s because this book contains the funniest exchange. I won’t post the full exchange but it does involve the line “The sparrow flies south for winter”. Trust me, it makes sense in context. A major honourable mention for funniest moment goes to the “Detective Inspector Me” sequence-

“I’m Detective Inspector Me. Unusual name, I know. My family were incredibly narcissistic. I’m lucky I escaped with any degree of humility at all, to be honest, but then I’ve always managed to exceed expectations. You are Kenny Dunne, are you not?”“I am.”“Just a few questions for you, Mr Dunne. Or Kenny. Can I call you Kenny? I feel we’ve become friends these past few seconds. Can I call you Kenny?”“Sure,” Kenny said, slightly bafﬂed.“Thank you. Thank you very much. It’s important you feel comfortable around me, Kenny. It’s important we build up a level of trust. That way I’ll catch you completely unprepared when I suddenly accuse you of murder.”

If you thought The Faceless Ones was epic, then brace yourselves as this is even more bonkers than usual. War has sprung between the Necromancers and the Sanctuary and caught in the middle is Skulduggery and Valkyrie. A word of advice- do NOT look up what happens in this book beyond the bare basics. There is a twist here that is so unexpected and out of nowhere which shakes up the very foundations of the series. Despite this being, in my eyes, the most character driven and dark novel, it’s still hilarious, action packed (I seriously want to see how a certain fight is done if the series ever makes the leap to the big screen) and the third act of the book is probably the best two hundred pages that I’ve ever read. However, it’s STILL not my favourite book of the series.

Overall, I feel like these three books are the high point of the saga. The first three books are awesome but quite simple and straightforward mystery/action fantasy stories, and the next three I’ll discuss next month, but these three just sum up why I love this series- they’re funny, heartfelt, entertaining and complex.